WANDERERS managed to rush through a last-minute deal for Nathanael Ogbeta to make sure he is on the team bus to Carlisle United.

The Swansea City defender has been snapped up on a season-long loan and will be available for tomorrow afternoon’s game at Brunton Park.

Ogbeta has had a frustrating two-year spell at Swansea, playing just six games over the course of two years. He was loaned out to Peterborough United in League One last season but had his campaign ended prematurely by a torn quad muscle.

The Salford-born defender is out of contract in the summer and has been on Ian Evatt’s radar before, with Bolton expressing an interest when he secured a move to the Championship from Shrewsbury for £300,000 in January 2021.

Wanderers were in desperate need of cover on the left side of defence after losing Randell Williams for several weeks to a hamstring injury.

Ogbeta comes to the club to provide competition for Zac Ashworth and Jack Iredale over the next few weeks and has not played in the Bristol Street Motors Trophy, so would be eligible for the competition, which continues with a quarter-final clash against Blackpool next Tuesday.

He can play either as a left wing-back, or as a left-sided centre half, which gives Wanderers flexibility for the remainder of the season. 

Peterborough are also understood to have made an offer to take him on loan for a second time but were rejected.

“Last season he had a really impressive spell at Peterborough,” said Evatt. “His performances were excellent. He's very much the type of player we want and need for that position. He comes in to add competition for places and to make us better and I think he does that.

“We've probably needed to make this move more urgently because of the Randell scenario but that happens in football and that's not to say they can't play together at some point as I think either could play either side.

“It's an exciting one for us. Nathanael is a player we’ve looked at for the past couple of windows who wasn't available then. He’s available to us now and we've been lucky enough to make it happen.”

Ogbeta is the first incoming signing of the January window but Evatt confirmed at his press conference on Thursday that his business was far from through.

The Bolton boss wants up to three more signings and retains an interest in Blackburn Rovers striker Niall Ennis.

Rovers boss Jon Dahl Tomasson has admitted the former Plymouth Argyle man could leave the club this month but only if he can bring players in first.

“In football, there is one week left and a lot of things can happen. It is a financial thing most of the time," he told The Lancashire Telegraph.

"There are rumours, some clubs are interested in Niall. It could be an opportunity that he could go away but nothing is clear about it yet.

"I can't imagine the club would weaken the squad, especially when we don't have many numbers that are proven compared to other teams."